Chapter 229. Unleash the Dog (2)
There was no time to rest. Caron and Leo had no choice but to head straight into the grand council chamber of the main castle with Gratia. The situation in the capital was far too urgent to delay.
"...So, let me get this straight," Caron said, raising a brow. "You're saying that Hugo, Leon, Leo, and I are heading to the capital together with Prince Revelio?"
Fayle gave a solemn nod, then replied, "That seems to be the best course of action. If we send troops to the capital directly—"
"We'll be branded rebels," Caron interrupted and finished Fayle's sentence. "Which would spark a civil war."
"Exactly," Fayle said with quiet admiration.
As expected, Caron was quick to grasp the situation. Even without hearing all the details, he had already pieced together what was happening. His judgment had always been sharp. And in a mission full of unpredictable variables, there was no one better suited than Caron.
"What's our mission, exactly?" Caron asked.
"We've lost contact with the knights stationed near the royal family," Fayle replied. "Your first task is to locate them. At the same time, make contact with the Master of the Magic Tower."
"Anything else?" Caron pressed.
This time, it was Halo who answered. "Find evidence linking the royal family to the Revanchist faction. You may use any means necessary. If you require the family's support, we will give it without hesitation."
Caron tilted his head, a sly smile beginning to form as he asked, "When you say 'any means necessary,' do you mean what I think you mean?"
"I'm leaving the judgment entirely to you," Halo replied.
A wide grin spread across Caron's face. Halo was choosing his words carefully, but the meaning was clear enough.
He'll only care about the results, Caron thought.
That had always been the expectation. As long as Caron brought back success, no one would question how he'd done it.
In other words, he was free to cause as much chaos as he liked, and no one would complain.
It was a job tailor-made for him—especially since it involved the capital.
"Understood," Caron said with a nod, doing his best to suppress the grin tugging at his lips.
He couldn't celebrate just yet. He'd expected the family to make a move eventually, but he hadn't guessed it would come like this.
"But even so, won't the royal family keep me in check once I arrive?" Caron asked.
"You'll have the perfect excuse," Halo said. "You're known to be a close friend of Prince Revelio. Everyone in the capital knows that."
"It still feels weird, though. All the adults here used to tell me to stop causing trouble... and now it feels like you're finally acknowledging me," Caron said with a chuckle.
As he spoke, both Dales and Raphael let out weary sighs and shook their heads.
His eyes are already gleaming with madness, Dales thought.
Honestly, if he's going to cause trouble, better that it happens outside of Azureocean Castle... Raphael thought.
At this point, they no longer saw Caron as a rival. Caron was just a walking disaster waiting to happen.
"Just remember one thing, Caron," Halo said, his voice low and steady. "Whatever happens in the capital, it's on you . It won't be considered the actions of the Ducal Family of Leston—but of Caron Leston."
"Do you think others will believe that?" Caron asked.
"It's not exactly a strange sight for a troublemaker to cause an incident," Halo answered.
"That's true," Caron said. "And if the head of the Ducal Family of Leston says so, who's going to argue?"
His grin widened. The conditions couldn't have been better. He had the capital as his stage, and a free pass to go wild. Even Halo seemed to expect him to raise a little hell.
This is perfect, Caron thought.
And with that, Caron, now unshackled by his family's restraints, gave a polite bow.
"Then with your leave, I'll begin preparations immediately," Caron said politely.
"Make sure you're fully equipped," Halo said. "You may go."
"Alright, Leo, let's head out," Caron said.
"Ah—yes, okay," Leo replied.
With that, Caron and Leo exited the grand council chamber, leaving the elders of the family behind.
As soon as the two young men stepped outside, a woman spoke up within the chamber. It was Gratia, the Guardian Dragon who had come to Azureocean Castle alongside Caron.
"Do you really think it's right to send only the children?" Gratia asked.
Halo gave a firm nod, then answered, "Guardian Dragon... The Ducal Family of Leston is not in a position to move carelessly right now. If we make a single wrong move, the empire will collapse."
It wasn't fear that held them back. Even restraint like this was a form of mercy extended by the Ducal Family of Leston to the empire.
"If Caron fails his mission," Halo continued in an even tone, "I won't hesitate to erase the capital from the face of the earth."
His voice was calm, but there was no mistaking the certainty and resolve beneath his words.
Perhaps it would have sounded arrogant to some, but Gratia knew better. There was no exaggeration in Halo's words.
Impressive, Gratia thought.
This man was a knight who had ascended to the highest possible level. He stood among the strongest of the era. She didn't need to meet anyone else to be sure of it.
"If the Ducal Family of Leston wills it, then so it shall be," Halo said. "So please, do not worry."
"Truly, you're descendants worthy of Rael," Gratia murmured.
"Now that the Guardian Dragon has awakened," Halo replied, "Even greater glory awaits the ducal family."
"The road to glory will be far harsher than anything you've known," Gratia said gently. "Rael never managed to conquer the Demon Realm. Even at his peak, he couldn't do it alone. That's why all of you must become sharper blades. You must grow without rest... and gather those who will fight beside you."
Her gaze drifted slowly over the gathered members of the family before she said, "Still, it's far better than it was in Rael's time. There may actually be hope."
It had been three hundred years since Rael's era. Until she arrived, Gratia had felt a deep concern—but now, she saw that her fears had been unfounded.
In those three hundred years, Rael's bloodline had flourished more than she'd ever imagined. They had trained relentlessly in pursuit of Rael's vision.
Although, even that wasn't enough—not yet. The Demon Realm could never be conquered by the strength of the Ducal Family of Leston alone.
But now... There was hope.
"Starting today, I'll begin purifying the dark mana in the North Sea," Gratia said.
That was the final duty of the last surviving Blue Dragon: To cleanse the sea corrupted by dark mana, and open the way forward. That was the reason her dying kin had poured all their remaining power into saving her life.
Halo slowly nodded at her words and replied, "Understood."
"I can still offer some assistance before I leave," Gratia said. "Is there anything you might need from me?"
Just then, as before, Fayle raised his hand.
"You're Caron's father, Fayle Leston. Very well. What would you ask of me?" Gratia asked.
"If you could wait just a moment..." Fayle trailed off as he pulled a document from inside his coat.
Gratia raised a curious brow. The document was densely filled with writing.
"Caron handed this to me earlier. He said it contained a list of requests for you, Lady Gratia," Fayle said.
"...He's more meticulous than he looks, isn't he?" Gratia said.
"When it comes to matters of profit, he's even more thorough than I am," Fayle said. "Let me read it out. First, strengthening the magical barrier around Azureocean Castle..."
And with that, Fayle began reading through the list. It went on for five straight minutes.
Gratia closed her eyes and listened in silence, thinking, I've been played.
There was no mistaking it—her new contractor, encountered for the first time in over three hundred years, was as tenacious as they came.
"Oh, there's a section he emphasized in particular," Fayle added. "Do you happen to have a personal hoard?"
"Of course I do," Gratia replied without hesitation.
"He asked me to check if you'd be willing to donate any of the treasures or valuables stored there. He says they'll be used as wartime funds," Fayle said.
"...Is he trying to rob me blind?" Gratia asked.
"Hmm... I'm not too sure. I'm only passing along Caron's message. Though personally, I do believe we'll need a massive amount of military funding if we're to build fortresses and harbors along the Northern coast. Just my opinion, of course—no need to take it too seriously," Fayle replied.
Like father, like son.
Gratia could only let out a long, exhausted sigh.
***
After leaving the grand council chamber, Caron headed straight to his room.
Guests had already arrived in the room despite its owner's absence.
"What are you all doing here?" Caron asked, raising an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you snuck in to steal my liquor?"
They were none other than Hugo, Leon, and Prince Revelio.
"Do we look crazy enough to mess with your liquor?" Leon replied with a scoff. "We've got a pretty good idea what would happen if we did."
"Fair enough," Caron said, chuckling. "But why are you all still standing? Sit down, make yourselves comfortable. Ah, except you, Revelio. You can stay uncomfortable."
"And why's that?" Revelio asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Because all you've done since getting here is eat. What have you done after coming to Azureocean Castle?" Caron asked.
Revelio cleared his throat awkwardly.
"People from the royal family sure are shameless, aren't they? Right, Leon?" Caron remarked.
At that, Leon shook her head and answered, "This brat's still the same even after his Coming of Age Ceremony. Prince Revelio, don't take anything he says seriously. He just spouts whatever nonsense pops into his head."
"I figured as much," Revelio said with a laugh. "I've been listening from one ear and letting it out the other."
"You shouldn't get too comfortable though, Caron's not wrong, you know," Leon said.
"Hmph," Revelio responded.
As expected, it was Leon who kept discipline at Azureocean Castle. She was the only one who could speak to Caron without restraint.
Caron plopped down sideways onto his bed and smirked, then said, "I was going to call you all here anyway. This saved me the trouble."
He leaned back slightly and reached under the bed, pulling out a crate filled with bottles of liquor. Grabbing a bottle of elven apple cider, Caron popped the cork and took a long swig.
Satisfied, he continued, "As soon as I got back, I was assigned a mission. And this time, it's something the four of us will be doing together."
At that, Hugo glanced at Revelio and muttered, "But there are five people here."
"Come on, he's a guest," Caron said. "And technically, the one who commissioned this mission."
"Commissioned? That's news to me," Revelio said, blinking in confusion.
But Caron waved a hand dismissively and said in a dry tone, "You must've figured it out by now."
"...Sigh. Can't believe how unfair life is sometimes," Revelio muttered.
"You leave home, you lose your privileges," Caron replied with a shrug. He finished off the cider in one go.
"The mission itself is simple," Caron continued. "We'll enter the capital under the pretense of guarding Prince Revelio. I'm sure you all know how things are looking down there right now."
These were people who had all done their part for the Leston family. They'd undoubtedly heard the rumors about the shady dealings unfolding in the capital.
Upon hearing Caron's words, both Hugo and Leon nodded, their expressions turning serious.
"Good," Caron said. "Then I'll tell you the real objective of this mission."
A mischievous grin spread across his face as he declared, "Our goal is... to stir up a glorious mess in the capital."
"What? I thought we were exposing the royal family's conspiracy!" Leo exclaimed. "How the hell did it turn into that?"
Caron simply shrugged and continued, "Leo, what exactly can we do if we enter the capital all nice and polite? The royal family will try to kick us out the moment we set foot inside. And we'll be too busy playing nice to move freely."
The current situation at the political center of the empire was difficult to grasp. However, Caron didn't believe all the nobles had sided with the opposition.
It was highly likely that the Marquis Diaz—house of the crown prince's maternal family—was involved.
But the rest of the nobility... They were probably just going along with whoever seemed to be in power. And for them, this was a golden opportunity to push back against the Ducal Family of Leston.
"The nobles have banded together to check the rise of our family," Caron said. "We need to treat the Revanchists and the rest of the nobles differently."
"Be specific," Leon said, her eyes narrowing.
In response, Caron infused the liquor bottle in his hand with mana.
Ssssss.
The glass bottle crumbled into sand and spilled through his fingers.
"We just need to show them what happens when they oppose us. Once they see it for themselves, they'll snap out of it," Caron explained.
It was a chilling statement, no doubt—Caron was saying they needed to make an example.
But everyone in the room nodded without hesitation. That was because, frankly, it was the most effective strategy.
"The royal family might think they've sealed every gap, but that's just their delusion," Caron continued, eyes gleaming. "Opportunities aren't found—they're made."
He leaned back slightly, his grin widening as he added, "But causing trouble? That part's on me. You all just focus on guarding Prince Revelio. If I need backup, I'll let you know."
Leo let out a deep sigh and asked, "Why?"
"I'm the only one who can become the troublemaker. I can't possibly give up this golden opportunity to my cousins, can I?" Caron answered.
"...Sounds like something you would say," Leo muttered.
Revelio listened to Caron's plan, nodding slowly as the implications sank in.
No matter how sturdy a wall was, it would crumble when disaster struck.
The ducal family made the right call, Revelio thought.
Caron had become the empire's most talked-about figure of late. Despite his young age, he had already achieved legendary feats. His name alone stirred admiration and awe across the land. That made him the perfect tool to sway public opinion.
As the saying went, once you became famous, even your mistakes would be celebrated.
Revelio wondered whether perhaps Duke Halo had counted on that from the start.
"Heh. Just thinking about wrecking the capital puts me in a good mood," Caron murmured, the scent of alcohol clinging to his breath. "I always wanted to tear it apart. Grandfather gave his permission too, so now I've got no reason to hold back."
Revelio let out a long sigh. He thought, ...Maybe Duke Halo just really wanted to destroy the capital.
Whatever the reason was, one thing was certain: The new generation of the Ducal Family of Leston, led by Caron, would turn the capital upside down. Perhaps one day, they would even be called the worst generation ever.
Of course...
Only to the enemies of the Ducal Family, Revelio thought with a dry smile.
He found himself relieved to be on the same ship as the Ducal Family of Leston.
"All right," Caron said, straightening up. "Let me lay out the plan. There's only one thing you need to remember on this mission. Do everything you want. And even do the things you're not supposed to. Simple enough?"
"Why not just erase the capital from the map while you're at it?" Leo asked dryly.
"Oh, I like that," Caron replied. "Should I add it to the plan?"
"You lunatic," Leo said.
With Caron leading the group, they began crafting their strategy for what they would unleash upon the capital.
And so, time flowed on, before at last, the day of their departure for the capital arrived.